Cruel
by caxo76
Summary: He never came.
1. The Real Chapter 1

The flowers were breathtaking, they were white lilies as they adorned the dressing room, filling every available surface, nook and cranny with their presence. Outside, she could hear the murmur of the guests and they conversed and milled about, taking in the decorations and comparing it to any of their previously attended weddings. She had to admit, the church did look beautiful, picturesque, as if it was a photograph taken from a high end magazine. Her mother had outdone herself. A now bustling and proud member of the 'Burg society. It was to be the event of the year. The wedding of all weddings. A magical day, that would lead her onto the next stage of her life.

Except...

Except it didn't feel like freedom. It didn't feel magical. It didn't feel like a breath of fresh air as one chapter closes and another begins.

It felt...hollow.

Like she was the shell of her former self.

She turned and looked at herself in the mirror. She was stunning, beautiful, done to the nines. She looked like a bride, like a model, and like a prisoner.

She couldn't fault anyone but herself for the emptiness in her eyes.

She had agreed to be married. But, it was out of loneliness, pity and self preservation. Not out of love.

She didn't want to be alone. But he never came to her, promising someday. He never professed his feelings for her when she told him of her engagement. There were no more late night visits or stolen kisses.

She laughed bitterly at the situation she had placed herself in.

She felt like an angel who had been stripped of her wings.

She kept glancing outside, praying for a miracle. For God to give her the courage to do what she needed to do, or for God to deliver her salvation, in the form of a roaring black Porsche.

But it never came.

She should have known.

Enraged she picked up a vase of perfect flowers, a representation of what she could never be, and flung it at the mirror, shattering her image of herself.

A card fell out, and fluttered to the table, becoming soaked in the remainders of perfection.

Shaking, she picked it up and opened it.

The handwriting was a familiar scrawl, forcing her heart into palpitations. Her throat became dry and her eyes filled with tears and she read the note.

_I miss you_

_I love you. _

_I' m sorry. _

There was no signature. But she knew who it was from.

The knock at the door only pronounced her shaking form. She knew who it was. He wanted a peek, he would say the boys missed her and that thirty minutes was too long.

What this what she wanted to resign herself to?

She was beginning to understand that alone was better then hollow.

Even dead was better then hollow.

They needed to talk.


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: I edited the first chapter, spelling and so on, as well as I felt (but I could be wrong, you let me know) that this should be a descriptive story, one without dialogue. I don't own it etc., etc..._

She would have liked to say that it went well. The blurting of the truth, the confessions and the subsequent meltdown, but she didn't like to lie. They had never been good at talking or arguing. The only thing they seemed capable of doing was trying to drown the other out. She should have seen this as a sign.

She would have liked to have said he was understanding, but he hadn't been before. Why would he change now.

She was sure there was a crowd behind the door, with her mother at the forefront. Ears pressed to the antique wood as if she was trying to materialize herself on the other side.

He accused her of being unfaithful, of refusing to grow up. She accused him of never seeing the real her, he only saw what he wanted to see, and what he wanted her to be. The argument went in circles, before finally resting on the frequent bone of contention, _him. Ranger. _ The apparent thug, the entity of evil.

She tried to appeal to his side of reason, but Italian temper blocked any forms of intelligent communication.

Either way, she came out looking foolish. As she always had.

It made her wonder as she watched his face turn red, and his vein pulse on his neck, why did she even bother to stay in this town?

Deep down she knew the reason.

The drive to the destination she refused to acknowledge finally gave her insight on what it felt like to be in the zone. It was peace, calmness. As if the world around her was a blur, and the only sight in focus was the escorts of yellow and white lines, promising an escape or freedom. Whatever she should choose.

She had left the church in a rush of white. Like a ghost in your mind. Something you had seen out of the corner of your eye, but couldn't quite make out. The barging in of the wedding party and its accusing family members gave the argument the break she desperately wished for.

It gave her enough time to do what she had always done, run.

And here she was, in her beat up car, which mimicked the feelings of its driver, dress trailing behind her, as the next chapter of her life lay firmly caught in between the driver side door and the car.

The gates opened automatically, they always had.

It was quite, and solemn.

She felt unsure if she was going to her new beginning or end.

But she had hope, deep down in the iciness of her belly was a small flame, waiting to be allowed to grow into the fires of passion it knew it could be.

She felt the eyes on her as she walked down the long corridor to his office. Her white dress standing out in contrast to the grey and black undertones of the fifth floor of Haywood.

He seemed surprised to see her, they all were. But with the others, surprise was a visible emotion on their weathered faces. His was a slight widening of the eyes, and the responding pace of her heart beat.

Shaking, she placed the card on his desk as a response to his raised eyebrow. The fire in her belly threatening to ignite. To quell the nerves, she thanked him for the flowers. They were beautiful.

He crushed the card in his left hand, surprise leaving his face, and a controlled anger entering it. Tension simmered cold in the room as he informed her that he never sent her any flowers.


	3. Chapter 3

The air whooshed out of her as if she had been dealt a swift sucker punch to the stomach. She was so sure it had been him, she had desperately needed it to be him. However, it wouldn't have been the first time that she was wrong.

Maybe she just needed an excuse to run away from the only chance at a normal life. Least that is what her mother would later tell her.

There had been no signature on the card. She had once again jumped to conclusions and its painful reminder was the slow squeezing of her heart, as the acrid smoke from her extinguished flame of hope wound its way through her body.

Spots danced before her eyes, she tried to regain her balance and focus but failed, tears blocking her sight-line to a clear getaway.

He tried to reach for her. She jerked away, stumbling back out the door, struggling to understand what had just happened.

He called her name. Softly, but the roaring of blood in her ears blocked out the sound. She didn't care, she needed to breathe, for the second time today she felt suffocated and blind. Stumbling around like a new-born animal.

Strong hands grabbed her shoulders and sat her down. The swift movement causing her veil to fall down over her face.

In a fit of rage, she grabbed at it. Ripping it out with pieces of her air and throwing it on the ground. She wanted to scream and yell and rage, but nothing passed her lips. They felt dry and cracked, as if they hadn't been used in years.

There were five of them standing around her. She laughed bitterly. If only there had been two more then she could be the broken Snow White.

Lester sat down next to her, running his fingers over her head and through her hair, soothing her burning scalp from the tearing of the veil. There were murmurs and harsh words passed, but she didn't hear any of it. She was lost, more so then she ever had been in her life, and now this time, there was no one there to save her, or to pick her up.

He never came, he never came she kept muttering to herself, like a mantra as she rocked back and forth. The Haywood building no longer felt safe and homey, it had now become another dead end of Trenton.

He should have, someone mentioned, swearing. She thought it was Tank and he swiftly stood up from kneeling in-front of her and strode towards the office door and the man sitting at the desk staring into nothing.

Everyone leaned over to see what was happening, but their curiosity was answered by the slamming of the cold grey door, and the gust of wind in their faces.

There was silence, a painful silence followed by a loud thud. She couldn't place the sound.

More muttering happened around her and she tried hard to zone in on what was being said. All she could catch was the tail end of a sentence and something that sounded like he deserved it.

She shook her head to clear her thoughts. She defended that she needed time to herself, to think and in some form to grieve. It had been a long day, they all knew it, so they conceded to her desire to leave, not before insisting that she take a different car.

She knew why. They wanted to know where she was going. For now, she was okay with it. It was like a ghost embrace surrounding her in the form of GPS. Least someone cared.

The truck was black, not only appropriate for the employees at Haywood, but for her, and her mood. It smelled like cleaner, a kind break for her senses from the strong scent of cologne that wafted over from the low, sleek car next to her.

The one that never moved, and never came.

The drive was short, or so she thought. Her mind was swirling in thoughts, drifting in exponential tangents and wavelengths. She wasn't sure where she was going, and after the events of the day, she couldn't honestly say that it applied to her direction in life as well.

The beach beckoned. It was beautiful, pristine and white. Unlike the remainder of her dress. The sea called out to her, professing its love. It would always be there. She smiled, drawn into the motions of the waves like a moth to a flame.

She had already been burnt.

The truck stopped as the water reached the middle of the doors. The water lapping at her legs, cleansing her body and soothing her emotional burns.

She smiled, closed her eyes and let go of the wheel. Bliss eventually took over.


	4. Chapter 4

Her sight returned to her in the slow form of tunnel vision. She was unsure if she had woken up or had drifted on into the next phase of human existence. It was quiet, had she regained her hearing as well? Or was that to come later?

She had gone to church religiously when she was younger, and still fully under the influence of her mother. Then again, who was she kidding. She made be older, as not a regular visitor to the church, but her mother still held a firm fist on many of the decisions in her life.

Where was the bright light? Ah, there is was. A small pin hole at the end of a dark walk. It was like looking directly at the sun without any glasses on. Everyone knew that doing that would cause irrevocable damage to your eyes, but for whatever reason, hers didn't burn or water.

She tried to remember through the fog of her mind what was next on this journey. Just because she had been a frequent visitor to church didn't necessarily mean that she had retained or paid attention to any of the information passed on.

The tunnel slowly widened, and she felt herself propelled forward, the light growing larger and brighter. What waited for her on the other side? Was she going to be greeted with honour as a child of God and brought for to Saint Peter and the gates of Heaven? Or were her sins too much for her to have atoned for in the eyes of the lord? Was there going to be a Heaven or Hell lurking on the other-side of the light?

Mentally, she doubted she was accepted to either. She had stopped going to church, as she was capable of greed, gluttony and envy. Envious of her sister and her easy acceptance of her lifestyle by her mother. Gluttony- well, Tasteycakes explained that one easily. And greed, she was greedy of wanting another man's love, while leading on another. Greed for acceptance by a tall and dark Cuban had led her to this tunnel, which she now believed lead to Purgatory.

Her forever waiting place.

If only she had had a few more minutes on this earth to atone for what she had done. To turn back the clock and make all the wrongs right again.

She wanted to turn around and run. Run away from the light. She knew she had a bad habit of running, it was to avoid. But here, she wanted to avoid her death, she wanted to turn around and run back to the life she knew, back to the chances and opportunities to change it and to make it right. To make it right for her, and those around her.

Her head began to throb. Suddenly, she became aware that she was cold, and that her hearing had began to return, slowly. She could hear voices, and wondered who they were, and if they were determining her fate. She strained to listen in, she had this sudden inclination to storm up to Saint Peter and demand to let her into Heaven so she could at least be what her mother wanted, and to finally help someone's life in a positive way. If he refused, she would threaten to do whatever was required to make a deal with the Devil.

She was determined.

The noises became louder, and painful to her ears, the light blinded her eyes and made them water. She tried to cover her eyes, but something held her hands and she was immobilized. She struggled, fighting, she had work to do. This wasn't her time.

A voice tried to break through. But she couldn't make out the sounds. She tried to talk, her voice a rusty reminder of what it had been.

Heaven or Hell. She tried to say. Heaven or Hell. She kept repeating it. She wanted to scream where am I? Heaven or Hell? She wanted to know, she wanted to be prepared, who was she going to have to make her deal with?

The voice cut through her struggles. Like a sharp knife cutting through her mind, allowing the fog to escape.

It said Heaven.


	5. Chapter 5

The flowers were breathtaking, they were white lilies and they adorned the dressing room, filling every available surface, nook and cranny with their presence. Outside, she could hear the murmur of the guests as they conversed and milled about, taking in the decorations and comparing it to any of their previously attended weddings. She had to admit, the church did look beautiful, picturesque, as if it was a photograph taken from a high end magazine. Her mother had outdone herself. A now bustling and proud member of the 'Burg society. It was to be the event of the year. The wedding of all weddings. A magical day, that would lead her onto the next stage of her life.

The ornately carved double wooden doors swung open in front of her, taking her breath away as the cathedral rose up above her head to touch the heavens.

The spires and columns were decorated in white ribbons and white roses, softening the hard look of the stone, making the church appear all the more ethereal.

Light filtered through the glass stained windows and on to the pews and floor, lighting the path she must take towards the alter and the man standing there.

She paid no notice to the faces turned to look at her, and the looks on their faces. She didn't care how she looked, and honestly, she didn't care about how the church looked, even though it was breathtaking. Her walk down the aisle had nothing to do with the people watching her, or the way the light filtered, or how exquisite they said she looked, it had everything to do with the man waiting at the end.

Was the church aisle really as long as it felt? Had it truly taken her this long to get to this place, metaphorically, emotionally and physically?

He waited there patiently and expectantly for her, as he had always done.

This time however, it felt right. So painfully right that her heart squeezed at the beauty in the sight of him.

He looked at her with reverence, awe and finally love.

She knew it had been under his hard exterior all along. His late night visits, and his gentle whisperings in her ear were only the beginnings of what was to come. For he was man, a hard man, who needed to learn how to love, even in his own way, to win the girl. And win he did.

The card she had found was written by him, he felt in a moment of weakness, but couldn't bring himself to send it. Thankfully for them, there were others that understood what the blindest fools in love couldn't see.

She breathed a sigh of wonderment, his name slipping from her glossed lips. _Ranger._ There was nothing more beautiful then the sight of him, his long dark hair, his fire burning eyes, long cheekbones and slender fingers reaching out towards her.

He was right. As she grasped his cool fingers in hers and took a step towards her freedom she could finally understand why he had compared the sound of her voice and her subsequent awakening to a moment of pure Heaven. He, next to her, was a Heaven on its own.

She was there now and she was blessed. Every prayer and begging to the Lord had finally paid off. Her physical awakening had lead to a epiphany of what freedom and righteousness meant to her, and her alone. For it was she that needed to control her own destiny.

Despite all they had been through, together or not, here she was at his side, and he at hers. It was like a dream.

He had finally come.

_A/N: The End?? Yes, no?_


	6. Author's Notes

_A/N: For those of you who were confused...I like the idea of having a story end in a similar fashion as its beginning. I am not very good at long stories, I don't fancy myself as having enough imagination and finesse to think on and beyond. _

_Anyway, on to the explaining. _

_It is made to resemble the beginning, so that you think it's a dream, or what lies for Stephanie beyond the white tunnel (if you believe she had died ) _

_But she didn't, because, even though the title is called Cruel, I couldn't be the one to write that. _

"The card she had found was written by him, he felt in a moment of weakness, but couldn't bring himself to send it."

_Ranger denied sending the card. I don't think he like the idea of displaying his emotions in that fashion, or that she would halt her wedding for him. He felt it was a moment of weakness, and Ranger doesn't like that, so deny deny deny. _

"Thankfully for them, there were others that understood what the blindest fools in love couldn't see."

_A.k.a the merry men sent it anyway. Someone is always meddling. Hoping one or the other would come to their senses. _

"He was right. As she grasped his cool fingers in hers and took a step towards her freedom she could finally understand why he had compared the sound of her voice and her subsequent awakening to a moment of pure Heaven. He, next to her, was a Heaven on its own."

_The voice that spoke stating that she was in Heaven was Ranger. She was not dead, most likely in a hospital, or still sitting in the truck. With physics and all that, a truck (unless in a drop off ) would settle into the sand and not go very far into the water. _

_Therefore, when she kept mentioning if she was in Heaven or Hell, she was talking out loud, and he said it was Heaven. To him, it was Heaven she was alive/talking/aware. _

_Then she says now she understands what he meant about being in Heaven. _

_I hope that had cleared things up. Hard to explain without dialogue, or other character insights. If you don't like the ending, let me know, and with enough please pretty please, I can try to work on something else. _

_Maybe she should make a deal with the devil...._


	7. Alternate Ending 1 after ch4

_A/N: For those of you who wanted more, here is an alternate ending. (Instead of a wedding recap) This will take place after the voice stating that she was in Heaven. Thanks for your reviews!_

The voice cackled harshly after it proclaimed her entrance into Heaven. The coolness that ran over her skin, caused it to pucker up, a tell tale sign that the voice was lying.

She knew where she was even before the clouds in front of her swirled into a human like form.

This was Hell.

The form morphed into something unexpected. It was not red, and Halloweenish, it wasn't commercial looking or even close to the Christian and Pagan descriptions. It was, earthly and human. She could have easily passed him on the street and would never have given him a passing glance, or would have know who he was.

_He, _ of course, was the Devil.

He welcomed her, to where, she didn't know. It had no shape, no descriptive features, and asked her if he liked the note he had sent her. She shuddered at the thought, and the figure laughed again, reminding her that hope was a futile feeling.

The air surrounded her, cold and unfeeling, and suddenly she was thrust back into her final scene. They sat in the back seat, watching as her hopeless form sank slowly into the frigid November water, and the truck inched its way forward against the waves.

She turned her head to ask why she was here. He sensed her question and haughtily reminded her how she was willing to sell her soul for more time with _him. _

As he said him, he pointed behind them and watched and a dark, low car roared up on the beach and a man flinging himself into the water.

She nodded her head quickly as answer, but time stopped and the voice laughed again. It wasn't her soul he had wanted, she was just a willing mean to an end. It was him he wanted. The world's best mercenary was to become the world's best soul taker.

Her mind back-pedalled. Trying to insert herself into the situation, she insisted now on her soul to save his.

The voice laughed again. He did not need her soul, he wanted Ranger.

She blanched at the thought. Doomed to Hell for Eternity. Hadn't he already faced those daemons here on earth? Hadn't he himself been placed in a Hell itself? Was that not enough? She believed that it was enough to turn a man's soul to dust.

Ranger would have nothing left to give to the Devil. Her heart began to break.


	8. Chapter 8

She must have voiced her thought because the human formed evil spoke again. He was always two steps ahead of her.

He informed her that he returned from his 'hellish' missions with his soul intact, it was his faith in humanity that had wavered and failed.

Air brushed past her hair, and the waves came harder into the truck. She realized that time had began to play again, she was going to watch Ranger witness her death.

He reached the door in seconds, his powerful body drenched and shaking in the winter water. He hit the window with something, smashing it into millions of pieces, matching the fragile state of her heart. She didn't not want to witness this, and turned away.

The air became still once again, and the form beside her caught her attention as he pointed out the shattered window.

There he was frozen in time, his face a contortion of pain, and tears streaked his face.

Her heart shattered, bile rose in her throat.

The voice carelessly mentioned that her saviour was wishing he hadn't sold his soul recently, he mockingly kept muttering stay with me Babe, I need you Babe, don't leave me Babe, please don't leave me Babe. She wanted to scream at him to stop it, but her mind was stuck on the realization that Ranger had already sold his soul. Recently.

He laughed, a short bark this time, at her ignorance. How else did she think he survived getting shot in the door of her apartment. The devil sneered, he sold it to see his daughter, and her, and she left him and got engaged. He shook his head, and muttered what a waste it was.

All she had to do, was get him to trade places. A life for a life. They would have a life together on earth until he died, and then he became a belonging, and a tool for someone else's bidding. But she would at least get the chance to make it up to him, and be with him.

But she knew, that if she even agreed, that there would be no guarantees that they would ever live that long. One of them could day weeks from now, but the Devil would have still filled his contract.

She begged for time. He only smiled, and the wind began to move her hair again. Time had started once more.

He pulled her lifeless body out of the window, holding her fiercely to his chest and he shook. From the cold, pain or sorrow, she wasn't sure. The tears feel freely down her face as she realized what a fool she had been.

Then it happened.

Ranger brushed the hair from the face of her body, and reached down and touched her lips. Brokenly, she heard him whisper I love you. Forgive me.

The roar was instantaneously. The cloud surrounded her and she closed her eyes to darkness.


	9. Chapter 9

The light was bright, and flickering, adding to an already dominant headache. The beeping did nothing to alleviate an already growing problem.

The beeping.

Was she in a hospital?

And if she was in a hospital, did that mean she was alive?

What had happened?

She blinked, wetting her dry eyes, and opening them again to see the most wonderful sight in the world.

Him, holding her, and very much alive.

Their reunion was joyous, an event that could mend even the coldest and most broken of hearts. The kiss was one to rival those told throughout history. A merging of lips, body, mind, spirit and souls.

Souls.

As far as she could comprehend in her hypothermic state, she still had hers.

What had happened?

Sitting up slowly, and carefully looking around for a unfamiliar, yet familiar figure surrounded in cloud, yet she saw none.

Was this a trick?

Then she noticed the flowers. The room was completely covered in flowers, a myriad of colours to lighten the room and removed it of it sterility.

And on the bedside table was a vase, of beautiful white lilies, whispering familiar stories and drawing her eyes down to the card on the table.

She picked it up shaking, knowing full well who it was from.

It read:

_Even in death, love truly does conquer all. Even a deal the Devil. _


	10. Alternate Ending 2 after ch4

_A/N: Well, if I did Hell, I guess I will have to do Heaven as well. So, last chapter(s) and then complete for sure! Thanks again for reading! _

The voice repeated that she was in Heaven, a heavy weight laying on her heart as her brain was forced to acknowledge the fact that she had moved on from one world to the next. Despite the fact that she was surrounded by the Heavens, and wrapped in an Ethereal light, it did nothing to dull the pain.

She was dead.

She thought moving on would be effortless, and painless. But it was nothing like Sunday school had taught her. She ached for what was, and she mourned her passing, even more so, she mourned the life she left behind and the opportunities that would never again be afforded to her.

She began to cry. What a waste of a life she had been. It had been filled with too many what ifs. And now it was too late.

A hand gently reached out and touched her on the chin.

She opened her eyes, momentarily blinded by the salty water of her tears, a slight stinging gave way to a rush of emotions.

It was _him_.

He was here.

Ranger.

He picked her up in his arms, and together they both walked towards the gates.


End file.
